Buying Guide: 14 Essentials for Your Next Solo Road Trip

Well, that’s one kind of road trip. And that kind of road trip is a lot of fun. But then there’s the other kind of road trip—the kind you do all on your own. Maybe you have to move somewhere far away, or you need to deliver something across state lines, or you just can’t take one… more… day in the city. The solo road trip can be a lot of fun, too. But it can also be horrible. Cosmically horrible. Horrible as in, “I just want to turn around and go home but that’s so far away, now, too.” So here are a bunch of things you might consider taking on your next solo road trip to make it just a little less of a non-stop grind.

Valentine One Radar Locator

After you get a Valentine One Radar Locator (which you must; it’s the best), figure out a place to stash it when your route takes you through states and counties where radar detection is illegal. Then, make a donation to a police charity since you’ve stopped giving them money in speeding tickets. ($449)

Credit: Valentine One

After you get a Valentine One Radar Locator (which you must; it’s the best), figure out a place to stash it when your route takes you through states and counties where radar detection is illegal. Then, make a donation to a police charity since you’ve stopped giving them money in speeding tickets. ($449)

Amazon Fire Stick

There’s no way you’re going to let a little coast-to-coast roadtrip get in the way of your favorite bad habit. Plug your Amazon Fire Stick ($40) into the motel or AirBNB TV and freak yourself out with Mr Robot, Stranger Things and House Hunters all night long. It has Alexa now, so she can help you find other things to watch.

Credit: Amazon

There’s no way you’re going to let a little coast-to-coast roadtrip get in the way of your favorite bad habit. Plug your Amazon Fire Stick ($40) into the motel or AirBNB TV and freak yourself out with Mr Robot, Stranger Things and House Hunters all night long. It has Alexa now, so she can help you find other things to watch.

Alpine PXA-H800 Digital Signal Processor

If you’re any kind of audiophile, factory audio systems make you want to claw your face off. But the systems in today’s cars are often integrated into the dashboard, which makes replacing them next to impossible. The Alpine PXA-H800 Digital Signal Processor ($750) significantly cleans up the signal from your factory stereo, tunes it for your interior’s acoustics, and even compensates for road and wind noise. It’s audio performance even a snob like you can get behind.

Credit: Alpine

If you’re any kind of audiophile, factory audio systems make you want to claw your face off. But the systems in today’s cars are often integrated into the dashboard, which makes replacing them next to impossible. The Alpine PXA-H800 Digital Signal Processor ($750) significantly cleans up the signal from your factory stereo, tunes it for your interior’s acoustics, and even compensates for road and wind noise. It’s audio performance even a snob like you can get behind.

iPod Classic, 160GB

The good old iPod Classic is still the best way to play music in the car. Dust off your trusted old friend, rip all your music in a lossless format, and build days and days of relevant playlists to help you through your trip. Official WIRED Playlist Ideas: “Will I Ever Get Through This Cornfield?”, “I Can’t Believe I Slept There Last Night,” and “I Shouldn’t Have Eaten that Big Mac.” Find one cheap on Amazon or eBay.

Credit: Apple

The good old iPod Classic is still the best way to play music in the car. Dust off your trusted old friend, rip all your music in a lossless format, and build days and days of relevant playlists to help you through your trip. Official WIRED Playlist Ideas: “Will I Ever Get Through This Cornfield?”, “I Can’t Believe I Slept There Last Night,” and “I Shouldn’t Have Eaten that Big Mac.” Find one cheap on Amazon or eBay.

Miir Insulated Pint Cup

It’s 10pm and the next motel is an hour away. Where’s that coffee you bought a few hours ago? It must be ice cold by now, no? Don’t rely on cardboard Starbucks technology. Keep your wide-awake coffee hot and your daytime water cold with the Miir Insulated Pint Cup ($22). Bonus: a portion of what you pay helps fund a clean water project you can track on Miir’s website.

Credit: Miir

It’s 10pm and the next motel is an hour away. Where’s that coffee you bought a few hours ago? It must be ice cold by now, no? Don’t rely on cardboard Starbucks technology. Keep your wide-awake coffee hot and your daytime water cold with the Miir Insulated Pint Cup ($22). Bonus: a portion of what you pay helps fund a clean water project you can track on Miir’s website.

Ram Mount X-Grip Phone Mount

If you’re like me, and you need to keep an eye on GPS while you drive, you’re not too worried about resting your phone on your leg. I’ve already had all my kids. But if you plan on having your own one day, why risk it? The Ram Mount X-Grip series (starting at $29) protects both your phone and your future children by mounting up there on the dash and never letting your phone go.

Credit: Ram Mount

If you’re like me, and you need to keep an eye on GPS while you drive, you’re not too worried about resting your phone on your leg. I’ve already had all my kids. But if you plan on having your own one day, why risk it? The Ram Mount X-Grip series (starting at $29) protects both your phone and your future children by mounting up there on the dash and never letting your phone go.

Butler Master Collection Motorcycle Maps

Once upon a time, road maps were printed on paper. They were impossible to fold, but were fun to look at, and you could plot your entire trip all at once. That’s what my grandfather says, at least. This full set of Butler Motorcycle Maps ($240) shows you how to get from here to there, but also how to find the fun route. These maps are designed for motorcyclists, but any road worth riding is a road worth driving.

Credit: Butler Maps

Once upon a time, road maps were printed on paper. They were impossible to fold, but were fun to look at, and you could plot your entire trip all at once. That’s what my grandfather says, at least. This full set of Butler Motorcycle Maps ($240) shows you how to get from here to there, but also how to find the fun route. These maps are designed for motorcyclists, but any road worth riding is a road worth driving.

Barton Perreira Gazarri Sunglasses

Even if you’re from Topeka or Akron, you can still make those judgmental yahoos at the freeway mini-mart think you’re from somewhere exotic, like Milan or Rhode Island, when you sport these unmissable Barton Perreira Gazarri sunglasses ($610). They’ll make you look like a million bucks and they’re polarized, too, which you definitely want while driving.

Credit: Barney's New York

Even if you’re from Topeka or Akron, you can still make those judgmental yahoos at the freeway mini-mart think you’re from somewhere exotic, like Milan or Rhode Island, when you sport these unmissable Barton Perreira Gazarri sunglasses ($610). They’ll make you look like a million bucks and they’re polarized, too, which you definitely want while driving.

Sparco Esse Suede Driving Shoes

Driving shoes are for posers, unless you’re driving an actual race car. You aren’t pushing the pedals hard enough to risk deforming the sole of your tennis shoes, and you haven’t touched a clutch pedal in a decade, anyway. But… you just dropped $600 plus on your shades, so you may as well go all the way. Get these suede Sparco Esses ($85). Because badass racers actually wear Sparco. And you’re a badass, right?

Credit: Esse

Driving shoes are for posers, unless you’re driving an actual race car. You aren’t pushing the pedals hard enough to risk deforming the sole of your tennis shoes, and you haven’t touched a clutch pedal in a decade, anyway. But… you just dropped $600 plus on your shades, so you may as well go all the way. Get these suede Sparco Esses ($85). Because badass racers actually wear Sparco. And you’re a badass, right?

Automatic Pro

Are you a bad driver? Do you often forget where you parked five minutes ago? Do you like to meticulously track everywhere you’ve ever been in your car? Are you too tired to compute miles per gallon on your smartwatch? Does your car have a touchy Check Engine Light? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may want to install an Automatic Pro ($130). The tiny device tracks all of this stuff and sends reports to a companion mobile app. This new “Pro” model connects to the Internet over 3G, so your loved ones can analyzed your live drive data and see your location even when the car is five states away.

Credit: Automatic

Are you a bad driver? Do you often forget where you parked five minutes ago? Do you like to meticulously track everywhere you’ve ever been in your car? Are you too tired to compute miles per gallon on your smartwatch? Does your car have a touchy Check Engine Light? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may want to install an Automatic Pro ($130). The tiny device tracks all of this stuff and sends reports to a companion mobile app. This new “Pro” model connects to the Internet over 3G, so your loved ones can analyzed your live drive data and see your location even when the car is five states away.

Z-Edge Dashboard Camera

We know you love nothing more than regaling the nice truck stop waitress with stories of all the horrible drivers you’ve encountered on your trip. With the Z-Edge Dashcam ($200), you can capture all that bad driving in HD and prove to the world that you were right. The Z-Edge is loaded with additional features, too, including no-brainers like night vision and the ability to turn on and off with the ignition.

Credit: Zero Edge Technology

We know you love nothing more than regaling the nice truck stop waitress with stories of all the horrible drivers you’ve encountered on your trip. With the Z-Edge Dashcam ($200), you can capture all that bad driving in HD and prove to the world that you were right. The Z-Edge is loaded with additional features, too, including no-brainers like night vision and the ability to turn on and off with the ignition.

Ozium Air Sanitizer

If you’ve spent a full day in your car, admit it—you and your car both stink. And no, those vanilla trees hanging from your rear view mirror aren’t helping. Have some respect for all the friendly, innocent people who come into contact with you on your journey, and keep your car as odor free as you can with a can of Ozium Air Sanitizer ($9).

Credit: Ozium

If you’ve spent a full day in your car, admit it—you and your car both stink. And no, those vanilla trees hanging from your rear view mirror aren’t helping. Have some respect for all the friendly, innocent people who come into contact with you on your journey, and keep your car as odor free as you can with a can of Ozium Air Sanitizer ($9).

Audible.com 30-day Trial

Anyone who’s ever driven for more than a few hours inevitably reaches the point where they just can’t take that damned music anymore. But then what do you do? Listen to talk radio? Not a thoughtful, progressive Renaissance Man or Woman such as yourself! Instead, sign up for an Audible.com test run and get any of its 180,000 audio titles read to you. Your solo road trip isn’t so solo anymore.

Credit: Audible

Anyone who’s ever driven for more than a few hours inevitably reaches the point where they just can’t take that damned music anymore. But then what do you do? Listen to talk radio? Not a thoughtful, progressive Renaissance Man or Woman such as yourself! Instead, sign up for an Audible.com test run and get any of its 180,000 audio titles read to you. Your solo road trip isn’t so solo anymore.

National Park Pass

2016 is the 100th Anniversary of the United States National Park Service. The National Park Pass ($80) lasts a year and gives you admission to over 2,000 federal recreation areas across the country, from the Cascades to Acadia, from the Everglades to Joshua Tree. Be a patriot and take a few iconic American detours on your drive. (Just don’t break down in Death Valley.)

Credit: U.S. National Park Service

2016 is the 100th Anniversary of the United States National Park Service. The National Park Pass ($80) lasts a year and gives you admission to over 2,000 federal recreation areas across the country, from the Cascades to Acadia, from the Everglades to Joshua Tree. Be a patriot and take a few iconic American detours on your drive. (Just don’t break down in Death Valley.)